The Flame of An Icy Heart
by Crazy anime chick since 1993
Summary: It was absolutely boring on my own; which led me to going back to my real absolutely-wonderfully-weird family. Now I'm happier than I was and everything seems better. But there's something weird going on with my twin brother and his friends. (Rating might change; couples will be decided once the story goes along. Enjoy!)
1. Prologue and Chapter 1: Not on My Turf

Prologue and Chapter 1: Not On My Turf

"I should have chosen Moms' house."

The sentence echoed throughout the empty apartment, making me shiver as if the words were a ghost. My aunt was out for the evening (for the millionth time in the past six years) and I was bored out of my mind.

It has been eleven years since I chose my aunts house, thinking maybe I could live like a kid instead of having to take care of Mom. Those years have been filled with awkward silences, a mostly empty hose, regrets, and worry. All of which were things that even Moms' lawyer sister couldn't change, no matter how many things she bought me. And trust me, she bought me a lot of things. (Most of which I didn't even need.)

After Mom popped me out and realized Daddy dearest was no where to be found, she kind of went into a deadly drunken stupor and often times found herself passed out on the couch. Even at such a young age, I knew my mother was hurting herself, so when Aunt Minori asked what I wanted, I left. As time passed by, however I missed her more and more each year, even though her antics were weird and goofy in my memories of her. Then again, she's not the only one I missed.

My twin brother is older than me by at least ten hours, give or take a couple minutes. He was always there for me and I absolutely loved him. (That hasn't changed either.) My brother, being the arrogant bastard that he was even then, held that against me no matter the consequences. If we got in a car, he got shotgun. He got first serve, he was the first to walk into a room, that sort of thing.

Of course, with him being older, he thought it was his "duty" to protect me from anyone who tried to mess with me, beating them up even though he got in trouble. Truthfully I didn't mind all of that. I mean, yes I didn't like the fact he got in trouble over me, I just didn't like dealing with people. I wasn't the one to stand in the spotlight. My brother was almost demanding it with his loud and obnoxious way.

Thinking back to it now, I think that was his way to protect me when he wasn't protecting me from bullies. See, my brother and I are as different as day and night. He's loud and obnoxious, often getting into fights with authority or others, loves being the center of attention and is sometimes very rash and blunt. I prefer to think before I do anything, though you wouldn't know it if I didn't want you to. I have a very big appetite for learning, reading, and being left alone. Authority and I are good, but that's only as long as they leave me alone. So whenever Yusuke had the attention of everyone, I was glad. Mom used to jokingly say that she found me under a rock around the same time she had Yusuke; Yusuke being my brother.

Oh, I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Izumi Urameshi, twin sister of Yusuke Urameshi. I like the color blue, sour candy, full moons, fantasy and romantic novels. Also, I have decided it was time for a little change of scenery.

See, for the first couple years of living with my aunt, it was fine. She came home rather early, we'd eat at the table and everything would be fine. Then one night, around my twelfth birthday, she didn't come home until after about one in the morning. Her long normally straight hair had been messy and chaotic, her make-up had been a little smeared, and her clothes had hung slightly off-kilter from how they were normally. I had been surprised by her appearance, noticing the slightly scared expression on her face. I tried to ask her questions, but she had evaded all of them and sent me to bed.

After that, she'd stay late at work or go with her friends to some random place that I never learned. It's been going on since that night my aunt came home after the normal time. I've taken care of myself since then, so I've decided something was going to change. I was tired of waiting for her to come home; maybe I could go live with Mom instead.

* * *

Eyes with a mix of brown and cat green were hidden behind pale lids while the owner of the eyes let out a rather heavy sigh. A black haired girl stretched as she laid back on the couch in the rather empty apartment. She wore a black and white shirt with black shorts and knee length black and white socks.

"Goodbye lonely apartment; Hello Mom. Oh, I should probably tell Aunt Minori. I'll have to find a university around their too. Hm… I should probably start with a let-Ugh!"

The girl doubled over, clutching the fabric over her stomach. Her eyes squeezed shut and she gasped in pain. She weakly reached for her pocket and pulled out a little pale green capsule that she quickly put in her mouth and swallowed. It went down her throat hard, but it was already working to help her deal with the pain until it passed. The eighteen year old girl was used to the pain that was decidedly erratic. It had begun when she was fourteen, at first just shooting through her stomach and progressed from there. Of course doctors were still trying to figure out what it was, why it was happening, whether it could be stopped, and if they could do testing that would tell them what it was. The girls Obaa-chan liked to say the pain was because her stomach was a black hole and her metabolism was working overtime to help keep her skinny.

Wondering whether Yusuke ever had to deal with any pain she'd had to, she stretched as she stood from the couch. Her Aunt Minori had made her promise to do four things when she felt the pain: she was to record it for the doctors to see (taking down when it was, what she was doing), take a 2 hour walk, run for an hour and a half, and do crunches for twenty minutes. Every two days (of pure undeserving hell), since the pain started, she would repeat the torture.

She grabbed her keys and her black running shoes after jotting down the correct information in the little black book that she kept in her back pocket. After making sure that everything was off and she made sure she had all the things she might have need for, she left a note in the off chance her aunt decided to come home early, she locked the door behind her. Hopping to get her shoes on, she made her way down stairs. Her waist length hair was quickly pulled into a high ponytail and she took off down the road. She loved starting with the run, letting her legs stretch and move. Silently glad it was a free day for students, as there were a couple middle aged perverts who would've liked to have seen her shorts covered ass moving side to side, she headed towards the park.

_'The park was_ usually _empty around this time.'_

* * *

Izumi Urameshi was half way to the park, twenty minutes into her run, when she noticed a rather large group of boys huddled together. She counted at least twelve, all rather similar to each other. They were a little scruffy looking, looked a little more "hard core" than other people, and were rough and crude. She smiled as she hid stretched her legs again, making sure they weren't paying attention to her. _'Ah, delinquents. I know your type well.'_

"Oh come on, guys! I know what I saw!" She moved more into the shadow of a tree on the sidewalk. Their scout was yelling at their disbelieving faces. He had an almost excited expression that seemed to be quickly moving into irritation. "It was definitely Kazuma Kuwabara! He was with two girls at the park."

"Anyone else with him?" Several of the thugs were already cracking their knuckles and grinning. In front of the scout was a boy with black hair and a marked face. The boy was grinning from ear to ear and practically rubbing his hands together in glee.

"No sir. Just him and the girls." They were all grinning now. A flash of silver was all the warning Izumi got before she noticed the knives that found themselves in the delinquents hands. She kept a careful eye on them as she ran her hands over her waist, smirking when she felt her daggers on her belt. If there was a fight between any gangs in town, she was getting into it. There was no way they were fighting on her turf. "Oh, and Boss. One of the girls is Keiko Yukimura."

"Urameshi's girl." There was a tone of awe and eerie excitement in those two words that sent a slight shiver down her spine. Izumi stumbled slightly as she backed up reflexively further into the shadows. After the first wave of shock, it was a little hard to keep from revealing herself and killing them on the spot. How dare they aim to attack and probably defile her brothers' girl; on her turf no less. She listened to their whoops of delight gravely. Taking stock, she grinned cruelly. Not one of them had taken out a gun.

As they prepared an attack plan, calling out loudly and aggressively, she called her own gang to meet her. She didn't specify why, knowing they'd know the instant they got the messages. After a couple minutes of silence, she looked up and cursed. They were already taking off towards the park. She cursed and took off after them, not noticing the red-eyed watcher that had hid in the shadows with her. He watched as she climbed over a wall, keeping track of the boys intently with her brown and green eyes.

_'If they so much as lay a hand on them on my turf… I'd kill them. Then kill bro for leaving his girl unprotected. What was he thinking, leaving his girl with only one guy?'_ The black haired boy lifted an eyebrow as she sped away. She almost tripped over a root in a yard and she growled, quickening her speed. _'No way am I letting them get their first!'_

"Interesting…" The boy drawled, a slight smirk playing on his lips. He dragged something out of his pocket, a small purple compact and flipped it open. He smirked at the screen. "Detective."


	2. Chapter 2: Not What It Seems

Chapter 2: Not What It Seems

"Kuwabara!" "Boss" wheezed from the middle of the park, his gang of delinquents huffing and gasping from running full speed to the park. Izumi could see them perfectly from her spot in a tree, close by. If they did something, she was pretty sure she could jump out of the tree and land on the stupid leader and surprise him. They were facing a boy with flaming red hair who had turned in surprise to look at them. In his hands was a rather large bag of cat toys, a feather leaser hanging out of one the holders. The girls next to the boy, one with long brown hair and the other with short brown hair, turned as well to stare at the boys. The red haired boy turned to his companions, about ready to send them off for help, but the obviously older brown haired girl took the moment to smack him in the back of the head.

The younger brunette, her brown eyes keeping the boys in her view, pulled something closer to her and Izumi gasped in delight. In the girls' arms was a small brown and tan cat that snuggled closer to the girl to keep warm. Izumi jumped down from the tree, ignoring the attention that brought her, and quickly moved to stand in front of the girl. She smiled as she scratched the cat behind the ears. Izumi was an animal lover through and through, always going straight for the animals. "She's so kawaii!"

"Her name is Eikichi. She's five years old today." Kuwabara said proudly, grinning as he watched the girl fawn over his cat. He chose to ignore the gang of guys in front of him, knowing all they wanted was a fight. He wanted to be over that already; fighting everyday was boring now compared to all the fighting he had done the past four years. It was hard to ignore all the teasing, the jeers, and all the people trying to get him to fight. He did his best to ignore it all, but sometimes he just wanted to beat half of the people into the ground. Especially when he was with his friends and family.

Izumi looked back at the boys behind her; they were getting annoyed and impatient. They weren't used to someone interrupting their "battles" and were wondering aloud who the hell she was and where she'd come from. It was surprisingly hard not to laugh at them and relatively easy to ignore the name calling. The younger brunette suddenly gasped and Izumi's eyes narrowed onto the silver flash of the blades in their hands. Apparently, they were done waiting; if a civilian got in their way, so be it. Her fault anyway. Kuwabara quickly scooted the brunettes behind him and moved to stand in front of the black haired girl.

"You think that's going to protect those girls? Ha! There's twelve of us and only one-"

"Actually, there are two." Izumi stated good naturedly. She moved out of Kuwabaras' shadow with a grin and a crack of her knuckles. The orange top, who'd already thrown his shirt away to keep it from tearing or getting it cut, looked at her strangely, but did not protest. She watched as Boss chuckled with his gang, some jostling their friends to point at the girl who thought she was tough enough to help defend a small group of people from twelve big guys. Boss turned serious as he caught the girls' eyes and sneered.

'_Hm, at least Kuwabara is smarter than these kids.' _

"Who the fuck _are_ you?" Several of the thugs sniggered, but Boss quickly silenced them with a glare. Izumis' grin turned into a cruel smile and she chuckled darkly, thinking he was in for a rude wake up call. She opened her mouth to reply.

"She's your worst fucking nightmare, assholes." Izumi turned her head to grin at her gang/band members. Her lead guitarist, Tamaki Kakuei, smirked at her, laying a long arm over her shoulders. His somewhat long black hair was in a low ponytail, tied with a leather strap he probably took from his backpack. The others stood around her, their hands already on their knives. She chuckled when one of the thugs actually did a head count.

"You lay a finger on our daitenshi and we'll tear you apart." Shinku Higashi said, smirking as she ran her index finger over her own blade. Izumi rolled her eyes at the guitarist, but smiled at the sentiment. The thugs she had beaten, including her own gang (which is a story for another time) had given her the nickname because she couldn't let "innocents" get hurt if she could help it. Izumi and Shinku both smirked as they watched the gang of boys shuffle nervously. "What? Didn't suspect for a minute that the daitenshi of this area was a girl, did you? Typical males."

Izumi chuckled as she stepped forward, her light green and brown eyes sparkling as the boys tried to hide the fact that they backed up. "I'm sorry boys, but you caught me on a bad day. If you don't want your asses kicked, I'd suggest taking off now." She warned, smirking when some of the boys actually looked like they were contemplating it. Boss glared at her and stepped forward, muttering to his gang as he went. No way was he going to let some poser (daitenshi-wannabe) scare them off. He lifted his blades in an offensive position. His glare amplified when the girl had the gull to chuckle. Her hands lifted the hem of her shirt high enough to show the silver and onyx dragons that wrapped together to form the twin daggers on her belt. (Two daggers, two dragons each) "I've got mine two, hun. You're not very scary."

"You know what? Fuck you, poser." Izumi held out her arm, preventing Kuwabara from moving forward toward the boy. Her band mates knew not to fight her battles. Boss curled his upper lip, glaring at them all. The brunette girls had backed up some, obviously anticipating the "battle was going to get rough and messy. "If you're the Daitenshi, why hasn't someone spread the word that you're a girl?"

"Because the last one who tried to "spread the word" is still in the hospital." She replied, shrugging one shoulder. Boss looked at her with disbelief clear in his eyes and scoffed. Izumi smirked and suddenly appeared in front of him. In the next second, his knives found a home embedded in a tree not too far away and Boss was on the ground, holding his cheek. He hadn't been prepared for her to back hand him. Kuwabara, alongside Izumi's friends, took the opportunity to go after the others. Several other knives found homes near Boss' and some of the thugs were rendered unconscious. In spite of the fear of losing face with their friends, some of the members of the gang took off, leaving behind their friends. The pianist, a sweet looking girl with died purple hair and red contacts, smirked as she sent another thug flying into a tree.

"Let me up, dammit!" Boss yelled, rubbing his chest where Izumi kept kicking him to keep him on the ground. He tried to scramble to his feet the next minute, but her foot landed unerringly on the same spot she'd kicked the last three times. With a move that slightly surprised everyone, he let out a growl of frustration and tackled the black haired girl to the ground. She easily kicked him off of her, sending him a good distance away. He landed with a grunt, groaning as he felt the pain from the landing.

Kuwabara picked the boy up by the scruff of his shirt, surprising those that didn't really know him. "You don't attack girls, asshole! It's disrespectful and rude." He yelled, inwardly glad of his current height advantage. He dangled the kid in front of him for a time, watching with satisfaction as the kid squirmed and kicked his feet. He finally moved and threw the kid in front of the strange girl who stood proudly with her feet shoulder length apart and her hands on her hips. She looked somewhat familiar, like he'd met her before. He couldn't place where he'd seen her because he was sure that he'd remember where he'd seen her eyes. Her eyes were a vividly strange mix of brown and green, catching the on-lookers eyes almost immediately. She blinked up at him as the boy he'd thrown at her feet cursed for a long while. "Apologize, then apologize to Keiko and my sister for scaring them!"

"No!" Boss spat, sitting up and wiping his hands off. He chose that time to spit at her feet, smirking when the girl stared up at him. The bitch would pay for- He went flying when a well-placed kick to his body sent him into a nearby tree. Izumi's guitarist friend, the girl with the vibrant red hair and light blue eyes, let her leg slowly down and moved forward to pick him up herself.

"What did I tell you before?" The girl asked, throwing the boy to her friends, sending him skidding near their feet. The boy cried out, feeling the ground scrape a couple layers off his skin. "Hm, we really _will_ tear you apart. I'll warn you anyway; try to hurt Izumi again and I will have to kill you, maybe even tear you apart."

"I don't know about you, but I'd rather not see that much blood, Higashi-san." The drummer, a tall boy with messy grey hair, stood near the fallen boy that was getting up just now. He moved forward, watching with satisfaction as the boy flinch as he wiped his arms of gravel. The drummer stared down at him, his hands in his pockets. "If you don't want to lose a limb, Otome, I'd take off now. If I were you, I'd also listen to what Higashi has to say, it's saved many people before."

"You know him, Kyoji?" Izumi asked, watching as the boy finally stood fully up from his crouched position. Tamaki smirked as he moved forward and grabbed the brown eyed boy's shirt. He pulled him close to his face, whispering something darkly in his ear. The pianist, whose red contacts glinted with flecks of purple sparkled with her own sense of humor, moved forward to save the rough and battered looking Otome from the guitarist's rough handling. Somehow Otome's shirt had become cut open in the front and they could all clearly see the bruise forming from Izumi's shoe clad foot. His arm had small droplets of blood slowly forming on the gravel embedded cuts, his cheek was still red, and the band all knew that there was a bruise on his stomach from Higashi Shinku's kick.

Kyoji grinned as he turned to face their lead singer, his light greens eyes sparkling with mirth. He was only slightly surprised that she didn't recognize the boy. "Yes, he's in our school." He replied. Izumi let out a hum as she contemplated the boy, now recognizing him from the fights that almost always took place. Otome, having enough of the "torture", took off down the street. He knew Higashi Shinku's reputation and wanted no part in her "fun". Tamaki smirked as he watched the boy go; they'd probably have to pry Shinku off the boy come Monday. Her memory of faces was rather uncanny. "He's actually in our homeroom, come to think of it."

"Oh, boy… Higashi has 'fresh meat' written all over her smug face." The pianist, Akamatsu Kumiko whispered aloud, making sure all of her friends heard her. Kuwabara looked a little confused as to why they were laughing, but he didn't get a chance to ask what the whole "fresh meat" comment was about. Izumi made her way over to him, smiling when she noticed the two girls hadn't run off.

"Hey, you guys okay? None of them got past us, right?" She asked, eyeing them as she got closer. The younger girl looked calm. Her shoulders were confident in their position and didn't look at all like other girls would have had they been attacked. It was the same for the other girl as well. Apparently, the attack hadn't fazed them at all. _'…Does this happen a lot to them?'_

Kuwabara grinned as he moved forward, taking her hands in both of his. Izumi couldn't help but stare wide-eyed at him in surprise. She hadn't really noticed his height while the adrenaline was going… "Thank you so much, pretty lady! Your help was very appreciated. I hope this won't be the last time I see your ang-" The older girl reached out and pinched the small amount of fat under his arm. He spun around with an "Itai! Shizuru!" and Izumi couldn't help but chuckle at the display of what she assumed was sibling rivalry.

"We really do thank you. Kuwabara is still somewhat injured from his last fight, so we really want him to settle down for right now." Keiko said. Now that they were closer, Keiko could see what Kuwabara had meant when he thought the girl was familiar. Although she couldn't remember where they'd met before, she felt that the girl in front of her was trustworthy and would do anything to protect them. …But why? He was also right about her eyes as well. More red around the pupil and more cat green throughout the whole eye, they were a strange mix of brown and green.

"No problem. I kinda make it my business to stop fights around here. There are a lot of kids that play in these streets and I'm afraid someone will get seriously injured from someone's carelessness." Izumi replied, waving away the thanks with a modest smile. Keiko seemed sweet enough, but Izumi wondered if she could really handle her brother. Would she have enough courage and back-bone to stand up to Yusuke if he gets carried away or something like that? Would the seemingly sweet girl let her brother walk all over her? _'God, these questions. I hate them. They make me feel disloyal…'_

"Dammit, people! MOVE OUTTA MY WAY!" A boy with sleeked back black hair shoved his way through the crowds. When he finally cleared a path, he picked up his speed. He needed to get there quickly and these people weren't helping a bit. As he swerved into the park, he noticed the group that he'd been looking for. The tallest boy sported an orange elvis-do and was arguing with a tall and older looking woman. As he rushed past parents, they looked back warily and he looked more closely at the scene. There were teens sparsely littered on the ground, some groaning in pain. A cluster of teens stood apart from the four close by, talking amongst themselves. His brown eyes snagged on the two girls talking to each other. They were smiling, both smiling cordially and amiably. _'I am in so much trouble…'_

Keiko and Shizuru looked alright, not a scratch on them. Kuwabara had no shirt on, but otherwise he was the same as the last time the boy saw him. The mystery girl was the girl with the long black hair that was put in a high ponytail, the curly ends reaching a little past her thighs. He slowed to a fast walk, his eyes searching for would-be attackers. While he was in trouble, Kuwabara was in even more trouble. He was going to kick that orange-top to the moon and back. The girl reached out a hand and patted Keiko on the arm, before walking over to the other group.

Both boys were about his height, one being a little taller and stood around the girls of their group like guards. They joined in with the laughter, one boy even going so far as to jump around weirdly, but they were tense and aware. The girls of the group, four including the girl who'd been talking to the black haired boy's friends, were just as aware of their surroundings, but kept their "awareness" well hidden behind smooth smiles and girlish laughter. All except for the red haired girl who merely smiled and the black haired girl who decided to jump on the jumpers back. She mushed his face around and they all laughed as the tall boy tried to get the girl off him. She suddenly looked up at the taller boy, bringing her eyes into focus for him.

"Hey, Urameshi! It's not polite to stare! Urameshi!? Hello!" Kuwabara yelled from his spot near the girls, watching as his friend suddenly stopped walking towards them. He looked like he'd seen a ghost, his eyes growing wide as he suddenly went into what looked like shock. Kuwabara followed his line of view and caught sight of the girl who had helped them. She too looked like she'd seen a ghost, her mouth somewhat opened as her laughter suddenly stopped. She slowly slid down her friends back, her eyes glued to Yusuke Urameshi. Her friends watched Yusuke warily as they tried to snap their friend out of her comatose state.

"I'll fix this." Keiko muttered, stomping forward. She suddenly rose up her hand and smacked Yusuke right across the face. He fell back a little from the force of it and turned his attention on her. The black haired girl blinked in surprise and before anyone knew it, bursted out laughing. She doubled over from the force of it and everyone looked a little confused as they watched the two.

"This is NOT funny, Izzy! And once again it is YOUR fault!" Yusuke exclaimed, glaring at the girl who was still laughing. She finally tried to gain control over herself and wiped the tears out of her eyes. A grin still lingered on her face as she sighed happily. "I seriously found none of that funny."

"Of course it isn't funny to you, Yusu. You're the one that gets hurt." Izumi replied, smirking. "And it wasn't my fault, last time or this time. You're the one who was just standing there. Last time, you were the one that got impatient and walked into the wrong stall." She chuckled again. "I remember how that hand print stayed on your cheek for weeks."

"Yusu?" Kuwabara stared at the two; he hadn't expected them to know each other. Was she an old girlfriend? Nah, Yusuke wouldn't do that… Right?

"Well, you're the one that told mom we'd be home at five. You're also the one that insisted you come in the store with me, for protection, remember?" Izumi pointed out, watching as her brother crossed his arms. He turned his head away in thought and suddenly huffed. She was always right when it came to memory.

"So…?"

"So it wasn't my fault. God, I haven't seen you in eleven years and the first thing you choose to do is stand around like an idiot and pick a fight? Real smooth, Yusuke, real smooth." Izumi crossed her arms, turning her head away in anger.

"Um, Yusuke?" Keiko looked at them both, both with their arms crossed and heads turned away from each other. Yusuke looked expectantly at Keiko, raising an eyebrow as she hesitated. "Who is she?"

"Now, Keiko, don't get mad, but there's something I forgot to tell you all." He said, grimacing in apology. She looked up at him in slight fear. He wasn't going to say that the girl was his ex-

"This is Izumi Urameshi. My twin sister…"

I hope you guys like it as much as I loved writing it. Oh! And Review PLEASE! I want to know how you guys like it, if you don't like it, if you think it sucks and should be burned in the fieriest pit of hell Satan can find. I don't care; I just want to know what you guys think.


	3. Chapter 3: Dear Big Brother

Chapter 3: Dear big brother

"Explain to us again how none of us heard about your sister, Detective." The black haired boy, his eyes sparking a darker red than usual, flicked his eyes over to the fragile looking younger twin of the boy/man that he trusted with his life. Yusuke had the sense to look away yet again. His sister was talking to Keiko and her friends, all gathered around the two as if to protect them. Yet again, she proved she didn't need their protection by sending a friend of hers to the ground with what had looked like a light tap. Izumi rolled her eyes as she turned her back to the boy, smiling as she continued the conversation between her and Keiko. Since he had revealed the true nature of the girl who saved his friends, they had moved their band of teenagers to Yusuke's apartment, leaving the gang that tried to attack Kuwabara to the police one of the parents* had called. He was living on his own now, having moved out when he had gotten a job working for Keiko's father.

He could already hear the fuss the bad tempered brunette was going to let out. Keiko Yukimura hated when someone was not completely honest with her, yet he had told her on several occasions he was glad he was a single child. It had felt like he was an only child, but he had also felt like there had been something missing from his life. He hadn't realized until now, as she stood with his girlfriend, that he had missed his twin. He had missed his odd younger twin: from the odd way she seemed to take things, the way she tilted her head toward you when you had her full attention, even her stubbornness about her hair. He watched as black haired boy pulled the ends, ignoring the swats that rained down on his hands.

"That interests me as well, for surely one cannot completely disregard the fact that he has a sibling, especially when that sibling was born the same day as he was." A red haired boy glared at Yusuke with vivid green eyes. They seemed to send their own green fire towards him, making him cringe. They'd been together for a lot of things and yet he hadn't told them a lot of what they didn't see. He had already gotten his head chewed off by Kuwabara, the oaf now wearing a handprint on his cheek. It hadn't been him who had laid down the hurt, but his sister who had surprised them all by slapping Kuwabara in defense of her brother. Now every so often, the boys could almost feel her glare sent to them all, warning from anything physical. (Bad vibes anyone?)

"It's not like I did it on purpose alright; we've been separated ever since I-WE* were separated by my aunt and the court. Last time I saw her was when she was begging m-OUR mom to get well." He replied, looking away as he thought back. Suddenly, two surprisingly strong thin arms clutched his neck as a body landed on his back. His first instinct was to knock the offending weight off, but then he realized it was his sister and turned angry eyes at her giggling face. "And just what do you think you are doing?" He asked, watching as she made faces to her girl-friends. The blue eyed girl and the brown eyed girl were shaking their heads at their friend's antics, thoroughly amused from the angry eyes he was shooting at Izumi.

"I am monkey hugging my dear big brother. " Izumi said, tightening her arms around the boy. Yusuke squirmed, trying to ignore the horrible feeling he got in the pit of his stomach. He knew what the feeling was; he just was not up for a quilt trip. The others found it odd that she would forgive him so easily, but her friends knew she would find a way get back at the boy. What none of them knew, except maybe some of her friends, was that she was actually deeply hurt by his forgetfulness of her. His blood by birth, his supposed other half*; how could he possibly…

"Izzy, you're choking him." Shinku Higashi smirked, watching as Yusuke struggled with the small wrists wrapped too close to his throat. Izumi looked confused for a moment before sliding down from her brothers back. Once she had her feet firmly on the ground, she let go of her brother slowly. Yusuke immediately took a much needed breath, giving his "innocent" sister a glare. Several of her friends laughed at her wide-eyed look of false confusion. "You're a devil, you know that?" Izumi tilted her head to the side, gripping her shirt in a small fist*.

"Don't be fooled by her innocent face; she's a lot more dangerous than she seems." Megumi Toranosuke told Keiko, smiling as she twirled a strand of her black hair around her index finger. Kyoji Ichigawa chuckled, watching as Izumi went from confused to normal in a split second. Obviously she was done trying to convince them that she was innocent. "You should see her when she's in a real fight."

"What do you mean a real fight?" Kuwabara asked, watching as Botan and Shizuru began talking to Izumi. His sister had one of her cigarettes out, but thankfully not lit. Izumi looked slightly surprised, but an oddly devious smile spread across her face. They bent closer to each other and Kuwabara sighed, feeling bad for his friend. Siblings always had the best black-mail…

"You didn't think _that_ was her full strength, did you?" Kumiko Akamatsu chuckled, piquing his curiosity. Yusukes' other friends heard as well, wondering over as Kumiko grinned. She had people that would listen to anything she said, for now anyway. "Well, if it had just been Izumi, she could've taken them all on herself. She tries not to use all of her strength, 'cause she says someone could seriously get hurt. It's rare for her to find even one person that matches her in strength; I mean she beat us all up the first time she met us." Kumiko couldn't help the smile that graced her face when they all wore some expression of shock.

"She beat you all up?" The red head asked. She nodded, taking in his green eyes and red hair with delight. He was definitely a pretty boy; hopefully Izumi would be able to land her a date. "If you don't mind me asking, how did this come to pass?"

'_Maybe not; he talks like an old man.'_ "Well, if you haven't noticed yet, some of us are Yankees. Tamaki was actually really close to being in a really big Yakuza gang. Anyway, we were all in our own gang at the time, before we learned of Tamaki wanting to leave the gang, and we were all ganging up on this one kid who we wanted money from." She chose to ignore their surprised looks, already having gotten over her recent past. "Fortunately, Izumi saw us all and interrupted us. What we didn't know was the Yakuza gang Tamaki was trying to get in was watching us, so they tried to attack her. We, seeing the gang and Tamaki following their lead, attacked her from all sides and she still handled herself. Surprisingly, she defeated all of us. The adults included. After that we tried to beat her up about five times, which of course never worked, so instead we decided to join her."

"Yep, she's definitely my sister." Yusuke said proudly, not realizing that behind him his sister was currently laughing with the female members of his group. (Most likely giving them embarrassing tidbits of when he was a boy. One being of how he got his head stuck in the bars of a jungle gym at the park where they had lived.) Tamaki and Kumiko both scoffed, not once believing that he could do anything like that. They'd heard the rumors about him, but there was no way both siblings were good at combat. Megumi looked at him quizzically, tilting her head this way and that to see him from different angles. When Yusuke noticed this, she smiled at him. "What?"

"Hey, Keiko, wasn't it?" She asked, looking over her shoulder at where the brunette currently was. The laughing girl got a hold of herself with a sigh and came over, linking arms with Izumi and Shinku. Yusuke inwardly grimaced. They were determined to make him feel bad, weren't they? Keiko smiled as she greeted Megumi, shaking her hand. It was then that he realized none of them had even really introduced themselves; they'd just been winging it with the names. "You don't mind if I asked your boyfriend if he would take off the jacket, do you?"

Silence suddenly took over everyone, Izumi making an odd choking sound when she tried processing the question. Keiko blinked, letting the odd question linger. "Um, no, I don't mind?" Ami smiled, laying her hand on Keiko's shoulder. The reason she asked was not to give anyone any ideas. Keiko and Izumi especially; she knew without a doubt that both wouldn't hesitate in beating her to a bloody pulp. If her impression of Keiko was right, she was as tough as she was. Yusuke smirked, feeling rather confident about himself. They'll see how great he was and when they did, they would bow down to his awesomeness and worship him for all et-

"Keep dreaming like that, Detective, and I'll think you just as bad as the oaf." The boy with the red eyes muttered with a smirk. Yusuke choked on a breath, losing the puffiness of his chest. Seeing the others eyeing him oddly, he quickly shed his jacket. Megumi and the others took note of the lean muscles adorning his body. They also saw the fading bruises that he sported on his body. Kumiko giggled, seeing a small hint of a tattoo near on his right shoulder. What she though was a tattoo was actually a black mark that was still trying to fade from his body. Izumi took note of it, but ignored it as she gauged her friends' reactions.

"Well, you've a lot more muscle than these ding-bats." Ami commented, motioning to the boys with her thumb. The "ding-bats" exclaimed indignantly, protesting the nickname before it stuck. Kyoji wrapped an arm around her as he prepared to give her a noogie. "Well, he does!"

Kuwabara grinned, shrugging off his jacket as well. "He's not the only one!" He flexed and Shizuru couldn't help the groan of exasperation. Kuwabara nudged his other two friends, trying to persuade them to follow his example. Both adamantly refused.

"Unlike you, fool, I do not feel the unnecessary need to show off." The red eyed boy replied, shooting the boy a glare. The boy with the red hair agreed, but much more politely. Kuwabara, used to the insults from his smaller friend, waved his hand dismissively.

"Aw, you just don't know how to have fun, guys."

"If that's what you think is fun, then you are more messed up than I thought you were."

"You wanna repeat that, hamster legs?"

Izumi held back her laugh at their exchange, watching as they immediately got in each other's face. They were definitely friends; there was no doubt about it. No amount of name calling could hide that fact from her. If push came to shove, they'd fight for each other, even with a little squabbling. She was sure of it.

"Hiei, why do you provoke him like that?" She heard the green eyed boy ask the slightly smaller boy once Kuwabara picked a fight with her brother. The red eyed boy looked away, pretending he hadn't heard his friend. Izumi smiled as she watched her brother and Kuwabara wrestle, their grins making her smile grow. She was glad he had found people to make him happy, especially when she had been the one to leave him behind. She was sure that he had felt more abandoned than when their father hadn't been there; what with her leaving him alone with a drunken mother. She wished she could go back in time and take him with her, but he was happy. More happy than the six year old she remembered.

"Izumi… Your phone." Shinku pointed out, her smile tilting downward slightly at the corner. They all knew who it was. The ring tone was a dark theme behind of a drum and screaming in the background. Izumi let out a sigh, noticing everyone turning to her. No one noticed that Yusuke and his friends had all been looking for the source of screaming. They were waiting for her to pick it up, some in confusion. Izumi looked reluctant. "You know she's just going to call again."

"Moshi, moshi." Izumi put a small lilt to her voice, making sure she sounded tired and bed-ridden. Yusuke and his friends looked more confused, but Megumi patted her on the back for her excellent act. Kumiko sent her a "thumbs up". Her aunt sighed regrettably. In the background, Izumi could hear laughing and hushing. Ah, another party it seemed.

"Sorry I'm waking you up, but I won't be home until around midnight. You can feed yourself, right?" Her aunt asked. Izumi rolled her eyes, mouthing "midnight" to her friends. They all showed exasperated expressions. Izumi soon looked shocked, though. "Oh, and I have the neighbor checking on you in like an hour, so don't go anywhere too far. I heard there are a lot of delinquents hanging around at night. A lot of the neighbors have seen them a lot recently going in and out of the building."

"Of course, Oba-san. I don't really have any plans, so I was just going to stay inside." Izumi lied, rolling her eyes again. What her aunt didn't know was the "delinquents" were actually her friends, mostly Shinku, making sure she was fine; unlike her aunt, who made the excuse that she was working. Izumi's eyes slanted over to her brother and the others. "Do you mind if I have some friends over? We won't disturb anyone…"

"Of course not. Maybe you can order pizza!" Izumi sighed. _'Yeah, 'cause pizza is a very nutritious meal.' _Izumi finished the conversation quickly, feeling the need to rant after she hung up. It was the same thing every time her aunt went to work. Her aunt would _"have to"_ stay late, she'd call to tell her, and then treat her like a child. However, the neighbor watch was a new one. _'Maybe she's starting to realize that you can't leave your "ward" alone almost every day.'_

"Would you guys like to have pizza? At my house?" She asked, turning pleading eyes to her brother first. He looked hesitant, but was smiling as he watched her try to persuade all of them. "We could have them deliver; wouldn't be the first time they dropped by the apartment. Oh! We could have a slumber party."

"Wait a minute, wouldn't Oba-san not approve of boys being over the house at night?" Yusuke asked, watching as Izumi whipped out her phone once more. She waved her hand dismissively, turning her attention quickly to the restaurant she had just called. He directed his question to her friends. Tamaki and Kyoji grimaced, looking away quickly. When Kumiko and Ami quickly walked away towards their friend, Shinku sighed. "Well?"

"Um, you see, your aunt is what a lot of people call a workaholic. She doesn't really spend a lot of time at their apartment, goes to a lot of "business parties", and is almost never home. Izzy has pretty much been taking care of herself for the majority of her adolescence." Shinku explained, sighing as she finished. "We actually take turns in keeping Izzy company, so you don't have to worry. Tamaki and Kyoji already have girlfriends and would never cheat on them."

"That's why it took me so long in becoming a Yakuza. I couldn't convince them that I didn't care about girls, like, their feelings and stuff. The Yakuza gang I was interested in specialized in the black market and a lot of times they've had run-ins with human traffickers. They wanted to make sure I wouldn't try to save any of the girls I saw." Tamaki said, looking a little distressed. Probably due to the fact, Yusuke looked rather menacing to him, especially with the glare he suddenly sported on his face.

"You didn't tell anyone about your findings?" The green eyed boy asked, narrowing his eyes at the boy. Tamaki suddenly became angry, his facial features sharpening with his anger.

"What do you take me for, an idiot? Of course I did; what if they had gotten someone I knew and were trying to sell their bodies while I was in the damn gang doing Kami knows what." Tamaki yelled, resisting the urge to grab Red by his shirt. Izumi looked over her shoulder at them and he waved her off. "I did some snooping and found out where they kept the girls when they weren't… using them. When I found out where they were and what time they switch the guards, I told the police. Made sure that they didn't tell anyone who the snitch was and dropped the gang quick. But they were following me, probably knowing that I was the one that went to the cops."

"Is that when you were trying to beat up Izumi?" Yusuke asked, lifting an eyebrow. Tamaki nodded slowly, fearfully watching as Yusuke sent his friends a glance. Kyoji watched warily, noting the glint in his eyes. Suddenly, Yusuke swung out, making the two boys cry out in alarm. Tamaki waited for the impact with his eyes squeezed shut, his whole body tensing for the impact. When he heard laughter, he slowly opened his eyes to find everyone laughing. He looked around him, noticing that Kyoji had been the same way has he had been. He also noticed that… Kyojis' pants were at his ankles…

"Love the boxers, Tamaki-san." Shizuru commented with a chuckle as he struggled to hide his heart covered light blue boxers. The others laughed as the two boys ran for the bathroom, their hands struggling to pull up their pants quickly.

"Once those two are ready, we'll be off to my house." Izumi stated once her own laughter was under control. She sent them all a smile as she called out to the bathroom buddies. "You guys better hurry your butts up! If we are not there before the pizza guy, I will skin you alive with my bare hands!"

"Your sister is kind of scary, Urameshi." Yusuke could nod his head as the other two boys ran out of the door ahead of everyone.

* * *

The * 1: None of the characters parents. I meant one of the parents of the children that were playing at the park that had been watching from the side lines.

*2: I made it so Yusuke is used to referring to only himself, because I thought that would seem more real.

*3: I was reading a manga and the main characters sister kept calling him her other half. I liked the sound of it and it does seem like twins are two halves of a whole, no?

*4: Izumi is about the same size of Keiko, only a couple inches smaller. She is, however, the same size as Yukina, who is taller. (Hiei is too. I think I imagined him the same size as Yusuke, give or take a couple inches.)

Enjoy!


	4. Chapter 4: The Move

**Chapter 4: The Move**

It had been several weeks since Yusuke and the others had stopped by. Aunt Minori never said anything about it, but she didn't warn Izumi about the delinquents again. It only took her less than two weeks to pack all of her things. It took her four hours to get in touch with Aunt Minori, the University she decided to go to, and her mom. She had decided that she wasn't going to live at her moms, but Izumi chose an apartment near there. Ironically, though she didn't know it, Yusuke had chosen to live near their mom as well. Probably because they both unconsciously wanted to make sure their mother was fine. Her aunt had not taken it well, sure, but Izumi had already made her mind and had already bought the apartment with the money she had accumulated over time.

Her aunt had decided to pay for the moving truck, so Izumi directed the movers to and from the apartments. Izumi's friends had decided to come by and help with the unloading and the loading. Aunt Minori, her brown eyes taking in the older people walking curiously past and the young kids looking out their windows, sighed as she looked to her niece, the black-haired girl crying out as her friends picked her up and swung her over their shoulders. She had been appalled at first over the girls choice of friends, but seeing as she hadn't had the time to try to explain some things to the young girl, she understood to an extent.

That hadn't stopped the older woman from having her own "friends" check the area out for any… strange activities that would affect the girl, but the only real affect would be what her sister Atsuko could do to the girl. She sighed once again, her eyes taking in the smiling girl surrounded by the delinquents she called friends. She seemed more animated with the group or maybe it was the concept of living on her own, but she knew the girl would go back to her. Izumi needed to be protected. Especially around her own family, she needed to be watched for anything strange. If they knew what she knew, they'd lock her up for sure. She was only allowing this until the girl was back under her wings- safe from harm and neglect.

"Aunt Minori?" The slightly unfamiliar voice made her turn around, her eyes widening at the once young boy that stood in front of her. He was eighteen now, his height allowing him to look down at her. His brown eyes were wide, just as hers were, in surprise and he looked over his shoulder as he took in the moving truck and the laughter. He smiled to see his sister trying to beat down a friend of hers. "How's it going?" Minori took a moment to clear her throat.

"Fine, and yourself?" She had schooled herself over her expressions and dialogue with the boy she knew lived close by. She wasn't all too worried about him, for her reports said he was settling down and wasn't causing any trouble. She took note of the brown haired girl by his side and inwardly smiled. She was momentarily glad that her reports were correct. The boy shrugged, not having any real answer to the question and not having any real time to answer before his sister had taken notice of his presence. Izumi, her giggling carefree laugh erupting from her, somehow avoided hitting Keiko and glomped her brother, sending both of them to the pavement. Keiko and the others laughed, not noticing the disapproval in the twin's aunt's face.

'_Honestly, in broad daylight, she just tackles him!'_

"You came!" Izumi exhaled, her arms tightening happily around her brothers neck. Yusuke sighed as he picked himself up from the ground, his baby sister in his arms. Keiko smiled at the look on her boyfriend's face, the look of sibling love and adoration. She knew that Yusuke had been craving to see the girl again, ever since he'd seen her several weeks before. They had stayed at their aunt's home far past everyone else, Keiko not wanting to hurry her exuberant love. He and his sister had acted as though they'd never been separated, according to one of Izumi's friends. Apparently they had seen tapes of when Izumi and Yusuke had been younger, before Izumi had been taken by their aunt, and they had seen almost the same type of conversation between the two.

"You thought I'd miss out on your big day? Ha, there's nothing I'd rather be doing. …Except maybe playing at the arcade, but hey, what the hell, right?" Yusuke grinned down at his sister who had pulled back to look at him in surprise. Her mouth had dropped a little and he could see the anger taking over. He grinned as he dropped her, though he was pleasantly surprised that she was able to land on her hands, her feet immediately kicking him in the chest. He fell back, thankfully still in the grass, and he laughed as he stood back up. "I was joking, Izzy. Geez, take a joke." She huffed at him, linking her arm with Keiko and pulling the girl along with her. He grinned as he dusted himself off, not surprised when he straightened that their aunt seemed still frozen to her spot.

"She's not seven anymore, Min. She's old enough to take care of herself." His mother's voice surprised him and he turned around, seeing her standing behind him. He smiled, but he got a light tap to the back of his head. He scowled at the older woman, getting the hint as he followed his sister and girlfriend up the stairs of the hotel. Obviously the older women wanted a time to discuss something; that didn't mean he deserved the tap on his head, dammit.

"What are you talking about, Atsuko? She's barely nineteen; she can't take care of herself, especially not around those rag tag friends of hers. They'll only get her hurt, I promise you that." Minori glared at her older sister, trying to get the woman to understand what she already knew. If anyone found out what that girl now held in her, not only would they take her away, but Minori would be taken as well. She needed to keep the secret under lock and key. It's why she invested so much time in her work, such grueling work…

"You're blinded Min, they help her. She and I went on a lunch date about a week ago and she explained how she lived. Those friends of hers helped when you couldn't, but you couldn't see that because you were busy with your work. What's more important, Min? Work or a young girl who needed you?" Atsuko didn't give her younger sister a chance to respond, only growing more tense and angry by the minute. "That's the whole reason you took her away. To take care of her when I couldn't. Yet you neglected her for your work."

"By doing my work, I was taking care of her. I was keeping her off the streets, away from bad people and- I don't have to explain myself to you, Atsuko. You wouldn't understand." Minori spun on her heel and stalked to her car. The next moment, she was zooming down the street. Atsuko shook her head at her sisters' antics before turning to the apartments. She was slightly worried about what her sister meant half the time she had been talking, but she chose to leave it for now. The important thing was she was able to see her child now. She grabbed a box from the moving van on her way, following the sounds of laughter and yelling coming from the third floor.

"Yusuke, don't you dare touch that box! Don't open it!" She chuckled as she took in the scene in front of her, her two kids wrestling with a box that sat between them. Izumi had her foot in his face as she pushed him away from the box, most likely something personal that she didn't want revealed. Judging by the determined look on her sons face, he probably thought that way too. He ignored the foot in his face, but was surprised that he couldn't for whatever reason get the box away from his sisters grip. It was in that situation that his friends, the orange topped Kazuma, the red head Shuichi, and the red eyed Hiei, found them in. Their reactions were varied but they did notice that her friends could only laugh as they watched the proceedings.

"Honestly Yusuke, you're not getting the box from Izzy. Your sister can be strong when she wants to be." They laughed again. Izumi finally wrestled it free and before he could grab it again, she handed it to her friend Shinku with express orders of "guarding it with her life". At first he thought his sister was joking, until Shinku's mouth twisted into the most devious smirk he'd seen on anyone other than Hiei and pulled out the most jagged dagger he'd ever seen. FROM HER BOOT! Izumi patted her dangerous friend on the head as though it was a natural occurrence and took the box with a kiss and a thanks from her mother. She bade her sit while the workers brought the furniture and the rest up. Izumi could already tell it was going to one hell of a night.

Izumi had been right. After the movers had taken off, everyone had pitched in to help her with moving everything and decorating the place. She hadn't allowed Shinku away from the box, which further confused Yusuke and everyone else that didn't know what was inside of it. So when everything was done and they were settled all around the living room with their pizzas, Yusuke confronted her. Izumi looked away for a moment, her eyes going downcast. Tamaki glared at Yusuke for putting in a bad mood.

"I heard about your death, bro…" She muttered, taking the box when Shinku handed it to her. Yusuke's eyes widened, the slice of pizza in his hand dropping onto his plate with a comical splat. She sent a half smile his way and opened the box. Instantly, everyone knew what it was. Though they hadn't seen each other in many years and hadn't been together, she had made him his own shrine, the newspaper cut out of his school picture. The only school picture he'd sat for, his thirteen year old picture glaring at them as he made a face at the camera. She had placed other pictures of him as well, some when he was alone or caught off guard, some with the two of them together. However she'd also hung a blue bird figurine hanging from the shrine's top.

"W-What's that?" Yusuke asked, ignoring the odd fluttering in his stomach. Izumi looked and shrugged subconsciously, closing the shrines doors and placing it back in its special box.

"It seemed like it belonged there, when I saw it in the store. It was strange how it just seemed to be the first thing my eyes saw, you know?" Izumi forced a fake smile before turning her attention to her food. It was silent for a moment before Izumi made a noise. "Oh, that's right! I wanted to ask how you all met!"

Yusuke choked, his eyes turning to look desperately to his friends to help him with the explanation. "Well, I was his number one rival. Heh, he won a couple battles, but I got a shot in. He looked up to me, you know-"

"Yeah, in your delusions. Every time I beat the bastard, he just kept getting back up. No matter how many times I punched his face in." Yusuke kept his foot on Kuwabara as he talked, ignoring the muffled indignant yells underneath it. The others chuckled and Izumi smiled as she took in his ease with his friends. Of course they would get along through fighting; there was no other way with her brother. His fists were the talkers, he just used his mouth to say whatever really needed to say. "I met the other two when they… helped me with something for a new friend of mine. Well, he's really more of a boss, but he can be a friend sometimes."

"Aw, Mom, your son's so sentimental." Izumi squealed, pinching his cheeks. He instantly pulled a strand of her hair with a grumble.

"Just because you were born under a rock…" He growled, again tugging her hair before quickly backing to avoid a fist heading his way. He was caught off guard though by the elbow that was rammed into his gut. He gasped slightly with a chuckle and he noticed the glare she sent him. The others looked a little confused though. The siblings ignored it, letting their mom respond as Yusuke dodged the punches thrown his way. Izumi suddenly swept his feet from under him and sent him crashing to the floor. She sent a flying punch at his face and he closed his eyes, only to get a light and gentle slap to the face. She grinned as she stuck her tongue out at him.

"Beat'cha." She skipped back to her previous spot, ignoring the stares it earned her. She got her family back; that was all that mattered at the moment. Any weirdness the others found would be from the giddiness that she felt at the idea that they were back together and as far as she was concerned, that was going to stay that way. She'd kill anyone that tried to take them from her. "We should play a game! No! We should have a sleep over!"

There were various reactions to the outburst, most of them trepidation. Yusuke didn't seem to have them, nor did Keiko or her friends, but her mother and Yusuke's friends looked rather nervous about it. Her mother explained that she was sure the young people didn't want her to but in and soon left, promising to call when she got home. The others took a little more time to figure out.

Shuichi, his green eyes the only real thing that caught her attention of his, was worried that it would worry his mother, which of course caused the "mama's boy" comment from Kyoji. Shuichi didn't seem to take offense to the comment; a small chuckle was the only real response he made. He walked outside for a moment to call his mom, which caused the others to follow his lead. Izumi couldn't help but roll her eyes when Kyoji walked outside, calling his mother. She and Yusuke said goodnight to their mother, watching from the balcony as she walked across the street to her own apartment. Her living room was rather large, big enough to fit everyone who was staying over, and she was glad she had enough blankets for everyone to sleep with. Unfortunately, she didn't have enough futons for everyone. She was doubted if they were okay with each other enough to share.

"You okay, sis?" She looked up at Yusuke, who was watching her with a concerned frown. She smiled. He'd gotten more aware of his surroundings somehow; able to tell when something was bothering someone. It wasn't the first time she had noticed something was different from when he was younger and truthfully, she was afraid of what might have changed him. She regretted leaving him behind, but she had known that he needed to do things his own way. He wouldn't have liked living with Minori, who had wanted to know every little detail of Izumi's day back when she actually cared.

"Yeah, just wondering if I have enough blankets for everyone." She said.

"Don't worry about it; Keiko and I can share." He grinned naughtily, not noticing his girl standing behind him. Keiko punched him in the top of his head, storming away towards the other girls as he nursed the bump forming on his head. Izumi laughed at him. "Maybe not. I might die in my sleep."

"My mother says it is fine, though she wondered at the suddenness of the invitation." Shuichi said as he walked in. The others walked in not too long after, all with excited grins on their faces. Hiei, who'd stayed in the apartment rather than call someone, rolled his eyes and turned back to the outside view.

"Well, Izumi has these random ideas that she likes to spurt out. Of course, they're mostly good ideas, so we don't mind them." Kyoji muttered from the couch, a bunny stuffed animal in his arms. He grinned when they all looked at him weird and pointed to the box at his feet. Stuffed animals nearly poured from the poor box, which was almost bulging on the sides. Izumi made a small choking noise and quickly disappeared from the room, the box now in her arms.

"Hey, Izzy? Do you need your ba-ba?" Yusuke called down the hall, a grin nearly splitting his face. Suddenly, he ducked, narrowly avoiding the ax to the head. Shinku caught it before it hit her, the blade neatly clenched in between her index finger and her thumb. "Hey, watch it with that thing. You could've killed someone with that thing!"

Shinku rolled her eyes, ignoring the stares from Shuichi-san and Hiei. Kuwabara was now excitedly asking her to show him how to do that trick. "It was luck." Shinku muttered, silently pulling away from him. His hand on her shoulder dropped and he looked slightly surprised as she dropped the axe on a box of books. The three boys watched as she moved over to the black haired girl they now knew as Megumi, both standing slightly away from the others. Shinku flicked her gaze to them, quickly looking away when she noticed their eyes still on her. It was then that they noticed the light blush dusting her cheeks.

"I don't think she's used to people touching her." Kuwabara muttered, watching as she quickly disappeared down the hallway. The other two agreed, watching as the girl reappeared with Yusuke's sister, their arms linked together. Izumi was smiling at something she was saying, her eyes momentarily straying to the axe and the three boys that were watching them. She sent them a smirk, her eyes twinkling mischievously at them. "Why do I get a bad feeling?" The other two could only shudder in response. 


End file.
